HAMBURG, N.Y. (AP)  Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly and his wife buried their 8-year-old son, Hunter, Tuesday with a promise to continue their fight against the disease that claimed his life.

Hunter James Kelly died Friday following a lifelong struggle with Krabbe disease, an inherited nervous system disorder that claims most of its victims in their first two years of life. (Related item: Hunter dies of Krabbe disease)

"We will not give up, back down or surrender until we have helped every family," Jill Kelly said in a recorded message that played as family photographs flashed above a small green casket flanked by two stuffed giraffes.

The Kellys, who didn't speak at the service, have publicly shared their private struggles with Hunter to raise awareness of the disease and research funds. They invited the public to Hunter's funeral, which they called a celebration of his life.

The couple sat at the front of the Wesleyan Church in this Buffalo suburb with daughters Erin, 10, and Camryn, 6, while more than 1,000 people packed the sanctuary. Among those attending the service were Kelly's former Buffalo Bills teammates Bruce Smith, Thurman Thomas, Darryl Talley, Frank Reich, Steve Tasker and former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Boomer Esiason.

"I'm here for Hunter, I'm here for the Kelly family. There's no way I would miss this," Thomas said.

Thomas, who played in four straight Super Bowls with Kelly, recalled how the quarterback called him with news of Hunter's birth. He said his fondest memory was seeing Hunter, wearing his father's No. 12, watching from his wheelchair as Kelly's jersey was placed on the Buffalo Bills' Wall of Fame.

Hunter could barely move his head but communicated by blinking his eyes. He underwent hours of physical, speech and breathing therapy and was home-schooled.

Jim Kelly lobbied the state to broaden its newborn screening program, a cause that also took him to Washington on behalf of improved nationwide testing.

The Hunter's Hope foundation established by the Kellys in 1997 has awarded more than $3.8 million to neurological disease-related research. Last year, the foundation and the University at Buffalo announced the establishment of the Hunter James Kelly Research Institute.

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